Technology can provide many great experiences. It is important to make sure that you are always participating in safe activities online.

Student A is on a chat and someone unknown starts chatting with them. They say they are 10 years old and live in a different city. They seem nice, so Student A continues to chat with them sharing information about their baseball team, telling them they are an only child and that their parents are separated.

One day before leaving for a baseball game Student A tells their new online friend that they are on their way to the game and wearing the home jersey which is blue. Part way through the game Student A feels like an unfamiliar adult is watching them from the stands.

Think about the information that was provided to a stranger.

• Did Student A respect their own safety?
• What could happen?
• What should they do now?

Video game addiction is when someone thinks about a game and they want to play it all the time. They feel bad when they can’t play and think that to feel better, they need to play more. They don’t want to do homework, be with friends or family, eat, or sleep.

An adolescent loves this one video game. They want to play it all the time and play it as soon as they come home from school. They play it while they are eating dinner. They stay up all night playing the video game.

When they wake up, they start to play. Even when they are supposed to be working on an assignment, they open the computer screen so they can continue playing. Their parents don’t know that they are constantly thinking about and playing this game. Lately, they have been playing the game in the middle of the night, once everyone is asleep.

Think about how this could be affecting them.

What are the risks to their:

• mental health
• physical health
• relationships with their friends and family
• mindful healthy eating habits
• schoolwork
• offline friends
• sleeping habits

Cyberbullying is the word used to describe bullying using technology. The consequences for cyberbullying can be very severe. Posting harmful statements or pictures of other people without their permission can be a criminal offence.

A group of friends are hanging out at the park when someone from school joins them. The newcomer falls off the slide and rips their pants. One of the friends takes a video of it and posts it on social media. A lot of people see the video and make hurtful comments about the friend that ripped their pants. Everyone posts likes and hurtful comments.

Think about:

• How might the person in the video feel?
• Who is responsible for the way the victim feels?
• What could be done after knowing what happened?
• How could this person be supported moving forward?

North American society relies on technology more than ever. It is easy to become dependent on a device in order to feel connected to others. Finding a healthy balance between online and in-person communication is necessary.

A grade 4 student is always on their device. Their siblings are always on their devices. Their parents are always on their devices.

The student feels invisible because all of their family members are constantly on their devices. It seems very challenging to get the family members to communicate with each other. The student is feeling depressed and disconnected.

Create a plan that could help this family re-connect with each other, without devices.

• What types of suggestions or ideas do you feel would help?
• How does too much technology affect relationships?

It is important to protect one’s privacy and to stay safe online. Sharing personal information online can put you and your family at risk for identify theft and other serious issues.

A young student has just posted a screenshot of their device’s online settings.

Identify some possible problems that this post could create for the student and their family.